


Neighbors

by WritingInAHoodie



Category: Batman - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, Jason Todd Needs A Hug, Kinda, Neighbor au, Not really good, cross posted from my tumblr, here you go, slow-burn, wrote it a while ago
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-01
Updated: 2020-06-01
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:33:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,931
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24486697
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WritingInAHoodie/pseuds/WritingInAHoodie
Summary: This was the worst time for your shower to break, well, youcouldask the neighbor...
Relationships: Jason Todd/Reader
Comments: 4
Kudos: 161





	1. Chapter 1

_Why me..._

You thought as you turned on your shower and the showerhead leaked dark liquid that looked so disgusting you were hovering next to the toilet just in case you needed to vomit. You quickly reached for the handle and twisted it around and turned it off, turning it back on again after a few minutes to see if it fixed. 

It just stopped working in general. 

You took in a long breath in between your teeth, sighing and grabbing the shower curtain, tugging it to hide the shower. 

You had a long work ahead of you that day and needed to take a shower - especially since you had hit the gym earlier the day before. You walked outside of the bathroom, padding against the carpet as you sat down on the couch. The television becoming white noise as you desperately thought of an idea that could relieve your predicament. 

You stared out of the window, your eyes first landing on the sunrise, and then the motorcycle that parked a few spots over from your car, you cringed as an idea hit you. The owner of that motorcycle was your new neighbor, you had passed him a few times as you left your apartment building and he walked out of it. 

You never stopped to truly take in his appearance, usually because you were in a rush to get to the bar that opened way too early for your specific tastes. As well as because if you stared too long you were sure you would look like a total creep. All you knew from the quick blurs of your vision as you hurried to your car, is that he had a black head of hair and he was buff. 

It just so happens that neighbor was next door, so, easy access for your truly humiliating problem. If you decided to go to the neighbor that was on the other side of you, you knew that you would be shot down instantly, the rude couple that lived there would spare no mercy on your needful soul.

The old ladies that lived further down the hall was a big no, you didn't need the whole apartment building knowing that you arrived in your PJ's and required a critical shower. 

Oh boy. 

You would have to waddle yourself down to the door, carrying pajamas and bathing necessities, and ask if you could use this possibly attractive dude's shower. You could already feel the heat crawling up your neck and onto your cheeks. 

Before you ran headfirst into your indignity, you called the plumbers and explained about your very strange shower problem, by the sigh that left the man's mouth and traveled over the lines and reached your eyes you assumed that recently became a pretty big problem, they said that they would be over to your apartment the next day, which was, fortunately, your day off.

You hung up and put your phone on the counter, proceeding to slowly collect your pajamas and your bathing essentials, you softly opened the door and slipped away from your apartment, walking as gently as you can over to the next door. Balancing all of your stuff on one arm and then rapping your knuckles against the door.

You waited for a little while longer before praying and knocking again, the sound of the door creaking open a tad shocked you a little. 

"H-Hi, um, uh, yeah, I'm your next-door neighbor, my plumbing is broken, and the plumbers aren't able to make it out until tomorrow, I was wondering if I could use your shower?" You asked hesitantly, staring up at the tall man. While you were waiting for a response you finally got some time to observe his features. There was a little white piece of hair that stuck out in the front of his head, contrasting against the rest of his black hair. 

He could probably crush you like a tin can with the muscles that he had, as well as hypnotize you with the aqua eyes that he was sporting. He had a sharp jawline, thick eyelashes, honestly the definition of attractive. 

He stared at you for a few seconds, blinking as he took in the information. He observed you, wondering if you were some sort of threat, he noticed the hidden panic that was splayed over your features. As well as clutching your pajamas so tightly in fear of rejection. 

He took a breath, pondered a few more seconds before he opened the door wider. He watched your soft eyes light up brightly as you moved your eyes from the door to his face. 

"Sure." He said, voice husky and low, by the looks of his hair and his clothes he was most likely sleeping.

"Thank you so much, you don't know how much it means to me," you said, the words tumbling out of your mouth as you took a quick look around his apartment. 

"It's no problem, my shower is always open for pretty ladies," he winked which made you choke a little bit on your spit, "the bathrooms are over there." he closed the door behind you and pointing to the bathroom door. He made his way to the couch, plopping himself down and reaching for the television remote. 

"Thank you again, um." you realized you never got his name and your cheeks flushed in embarrassment, but by the smirk on his lips, and the soft chuckles emitting from him he found it amusing.

"Jason Todd." 

"[Y/N] [L/N]," you spoke, shaking his hand and turning towards the bathroom and quickly closing the door before you somehow managed to embarrass yourself further.

You took a quick shower before changing and getting out of the bathroom, your wet hair dripping down your back and onto the clothes that covered you. You clutched your dirty clothes to your chest and walked to the couch where Jason was still sat. 

He stood up from the couch and walked you to the door, you stood in the hallway and he leaned against the door.

"I know it was kinda weird for a stranger to invade your apartment and shower, so I, erm, was wondering if maybe we could hang out one of these days? I mean, I don't know anyone in the apartment complex other than you now, since I moved in only a few weeks ago-" you started to ramble, averting his eyes to down the hall to make sure no one was going to see you in your PJ's.

"That sounds nice, doll." Jason cut off your rambling, smiling, and making sure to use a pet-name so that it would grab your attention easier. 

You blinked widely before shifting your weight from one leg to the other in nervousness, before giving a smile as well. 

"Great, I'll see you around, I guess." you walk-sprinted back to your room, before flopping on the bed and sighing, your eyes darting to the clock and groaning because you were supposed to be at the bar in forty minutes.

-

Jason sighed, fumbling around his bedroom to find all the things he needed before patrol, swiping the chest plate from the ground and settling it on his chest, as well as his gloves and his leather jacket. he zipped up his leather jacket to hide the red bat insignia on his chest, he kept his hood and his guns hidden away under his bike seat, since this complex wasn't as safe as any of his other safehouses. 

He opened the door, ready to make the trek down to his motorcycle only to see a batch of cookies with cling wrap over them, with a post-it note stuck on the front. He picked up the post-it note and it read. 

"Here's some appreciation cookies, thanks for letting me use your shower :D." 

With your name scribbled under the note, he picked up the plate of cookies and made sure to test them for any type of poison before he ate them. He let them sit on his counter and quickly scribbled down a note of his own and left the apartment, locking the door behind him. 

He walked the short distance down the hall and slapped the note onto your door, before walking to the elevator to head out of the building.

While he was walking towards his motorcycle, you happened to pull into your parking slot, you hopped out of the car and walked towards the complex, using your flashlight to make sure you didn't unexpectedly trip over anything. 

He noticed your hair was styled nicely, and your lips have painted a color that complimented your face, your outfit was nicer than casual clothes, but not completely formal. You happened to not notice him, ready to just get inside your apartment and pass out in the warm comfy covers. 

As you walked up to your door you noticed the note that sat on your door, 

"Cookies are always appreciated, thanks doll." 

You had a wobbly smile on your lips as you peeled the note off the door and walked inside. 

-

The next day went by quickly, you just lounged around all day and looked at your phone. It wasn't until the day after that you would see Jason again.

-

You sighed, the wet cloth under your hand leaking as you scrubbed the bar and the tables. The customers in the place loud and bustling with mindless chatter, you placed the cloth on the side of the sink and walked out of the bar, getting the orders of some people that had walked in five minutes earlier. 

You brought their order back to the bar and gave it to the new bartender, which was quick to start making the drinks scribbled down on the paper. You heard a customer complain about their drink being wrong and before you approached them to ask what was wrong, you took a deep breath.

-

Jason sighed, sitting on a gargoyle, perched high above the city and staring down at all of the lights that were merging, he had decided to start patrolling as soon as the sky became dark, so even though it was only 11:00 PM, he was exhausted, his bones rattling as he set down in an alleyway.

"I'm gonna go take a nap," Jason called out onto comms, not waiting for any responses as he took off his helmet and put it under the seat of his bike, also taking off all his weaponry and placing it there as well, zipping up his jacket and getting on his motorcycle.

He started the bike and started to ride back to the complex, as he was reaching the complex, he noticed that there was a bar that was set off to the side of the road. He thought for a second before deciding that a small drink would be very nice, he pulled into a parking spot before walking into the bar, he weaved his way through people until he pulled himself onto a bar stool.

You decided to help out the new bartender, approaching the new customer and pulling out a paper pad, as you met the customer's eyes you were a little shocked to see familiar aqua eyes and white shock of hair staring back at you. 

"I don't suppose you're on the menu," Jason let out a faux sigh, with a sly side smile, watching as you became flustered, "Guess I'll just have a small glass of whiskey." 

"Jason, wow, I-uh, I'll get right to it." You stuttered before grabbing a bottle and pouring a small amount of whiskey in a glass before sliding it over to him.

You then leaned against the counter, seeing as everyone around seemed happy with their drink, You placed yourself out of the other bartender's way, which happened to be right next to Jason. You then tried to make a simple conversation with Jason, which started a little awkward.

"So, where did you live previously before you moved in?" You asked, twiddling your thumbs.

"Hm? Like on the border of East End." Jason said nonchalantly like it wasn't a big deal that he was living in pretty much Crime Central.

"Isn't that place notorious for muggings and crimes and stuff?" 

"Yep." 

"Huh, why live there?"

"It was cheap." 

"I imagine, hey, I have a question, as a Gothamite, is Gotham as bad as everyone says it is?" 

Jason stared at you, he figured that the apartment next door to him was your first-ever apartment in Gotham.

"Let's see, take whatever you've been told, and times that by ten, that's Gotham." 

"That's pretty bad, I mean, at least we still have vigilantes helping out." 

"Yeah, who's your favorite vigilante?" Jason asked, leaning on his hand to stare at you.

"Mmm, Red Hood, probably." 

Jason had a grin splay across his face. "He's my favorite vigilante too." 

"Aw, sweet, too bad I left my Red Hood hoodie at home." You sighed, Jason, letting a rare flush creep up onto his cheeks.

As someone sitting at the bar waved you over, Jason's phone blew up with text messages, mostly from Dick asking for his help dealing with a bank robbery being led by Two-Face. Jason shot him a text before pulling out a twenty-dollar bill from his pocket and post-it note, scribbling down something before taking off towards where Dick said the crime was in progress.

As you came back to his seat you noticed the note on top of the bill. 

He gave you his number.

You practically melted into a puddle then and there.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: I heard constant coughing in your apartment it sounded like you were choking so I panicked and kicked down your door to come save you. Wait, you're not choking and just have a bad cold? Oh my god I'M sO SORrY. I'LL PAY FOR THE DOOR. I'LL ALSO MAKE YOU SOME SOUP.

**Three months later.**

"Nice job guys!" an over-enthusiastic voice cut through the harsh noises of fists hitting flesh, which honestly, Jason was pretty sure that voice could induce a migraine if necessary. 

"Job's not over yet Dickie, they're splitting up," Jason grunted, his voice straining as he sprinted through alleyways his guns sitting tightly in his hands. Shooting for kneecaps every time he got a glimpse of his target. His thick combat boots shooting echos around him and forward as they hit against the pavement of the ground. One of the thugs that were running from him let out a curse as one of Jason's bullets skimmed the side of their leg. 

No criminal enters Red Hood's turf and leaves unharmed.

"There's a group heading towards East End, probably looking for backup, Robin and I will cut them off," Batman growled, the faint noise of wheels squealing against the pavement and the batmobile accelerating towards East End. 

"Don't worry B, Jason, and I have this covered," Dick said rolling around some bullets and hitting someone across the torso with his escrima sticks. 

"I'm not worried," Bruce grumbled back. 

"You should be," Jason started, slapping a masked man that was left behind with the butt of his gun, "If this doesn't end soon, I gotta ditch, got something planned." Jason grabbed one of his guns and holstered it, palming one of the pockets of his cargo pants for his phone, weaving around a bullet fired at his face while texting you.

" _You? Plans?_ what happened to Jason Todd that I know?" Dick asked in shock, or maybe that was just the missed taser that just almost hit him. 

"He died." 

" _Dude_."

Jason snorted, finishing his text that said he was going to be late before placing it back in his pocket. He approached the last of Scarecrow's men in the group he was chasing, quickly shooting a bullet and watching as the man crumpled to the ground dropping whatever canister they deemed more important than chasing after the Batfamily. 

"Uhh, got a canister," Jason called out after slamming his booted heel onto the head of the body on the ground, making sure that he was knocked out. "Anybody have any idea why they're carrying canisters and flailing around in my turf?" 

"Scarecrow's working on a new fear toxin, whatever is in that canister is a key ingredient," Bruce said, opening the doors of the back of the truck that he and Robin had just stopped, seeing canisters piled high.

"Delightful." Jason groaned, walking back to where Dick was finishing up and zip-tying the ones that got knocked out. 

"'Ingredient' makes it sound like a cooking recipe. Just take some of this drug and some of that drug, mix it all for about twenty minutes and done! You can now incapacitate any vigilante that stands in your way." Dick chimed, his voice ending in a giggle to mock any cooking channels. 

"Scarecrow's cooking show, the food _so_ tasty it gives you a fright." Jason chuckled, adding onto Dick's jingle. 

Robin, who had his comm off the whole time and decided just to listen, turned on his comm. "I heard their food is so exceptional that you can scream." and then turned his comm off. 

That left Jason and Dick cackling as Bruce shot a glare at Damian. 

"Anyway, we're all done here B," Dick said, finishing the zip-tie. 

Jason met up with Dick, placing the canister on the ground and popping his helmet off, showing off his red domino mask. He took a gloved hand and smoothed it over his hair, trying to make sure it wasn't sticking straight up. "I need a drink." He complained, holstering the gun in his left hand. 

"I think I'm gonna agree with you this time." Dick ruffled the black hair of his baby brother, which Jason then slapped the hand away from his hair. 

Jason looked at his phone and you still hadn't responded to his text, he looked up at Dick and sighed. "I won't be able to stop you from following me to a bar, will I?" Jason said, knowing that Dick would try to make this some family-bonding time.

"Nope. I'll change and meet you there." Dick smiled before grappling away onto a nearby building. 

Jason didn't respond and just turned around and started walking towards where he had left his motorcycle. He removed his domino mask and switched helmets, as well as putting his guns under his seat. He grabbed a regular helmet instead of his stop-sign colored one and slipped it on. 

He drove towards the bar that you worked at, after getting off his motorcycle and zipping up his jacket to hide the bat symbol like he always did when he visited the bar that you worked at. He jogged up the stairs before pulling at the handle of the door and letting himself in, walking into the familiar atmosphere. 

You and he had hung out in the bar a lot, it's where he had asked you on your first date a month and a half ago. He knew the bar like the back of his hand at this point. 

The air in the place was thick and hot, vibrant lights flashing around making Jason squint his eyes as he carded through the people and sat at the end of the bar like he always did. He scanned all of the bartenders and frowned when he didn't see you.

Did you call off the uh, was this a date? A hangout? Jason had no idea, but that was another problem to tackle at a different time.

Where were you? 

He tapped his fingers against the bar in an erratic beat, syncing the beat up with the music that was pounding around the bar, shaking the floor and making glasses almost tumble off the bar. 

He ordered himself a drink as he rested against his hand, blowing at the stray hairs that had invaded his vision. 

He felt someone slide in the chair next to him, he flickered his eyes over to see his obnoxious brother, this time in his civvies. 

"Out of all the bars you could've picked, why'd you pick this one?" Dick had to raise his voice to get it to Jason who was sitting right next to him.

"I was meeting a... good friend, here." Jason almost said girlfriend, but 1: he wasn't even sure what the two of you were, you both had hung out together a lot, but that didn't mean anything. 2: Why in the world would he ever tell Dick that he was possibly dating someone?

"You have friends?" Dick inquired, which Jason retaliated by sticking out his tongue and picking up his drink and sipping. 

The rest of the night was incredibly uneventful. Jason didn't stick around in the bar for very long, had only a tiny glass of alcohol, and drove home. He decided that instead of disturbing everyone in the complex that he was just going to grapple up into his apartment, slide into the apartment and take a nice shower to remove the knots that collected between his shoulder blades. 

Jason sighed before shooting a grappling line, watching as it soundlessly attached to the windowsill, he slotted his fingers under the barely cracked window and opened it, removing the screen and rolling into the apartment. He knew how thin the walls were between Jason's apartment and yours, so he tried to be as silent as possible. 

He threw his patrol gear into a corner of his room, walking towards the showering and turning it on hot, rolling his shoulders around to stretch them as he grabbed a Red Hood t-shirt and flannel pants and threw them onto the counter near the shower, he quickly stripped out of his clothes and stepped into the shower relief filling his body as his shoulders became untaught.

After he got showered and dressed, he climbed into bed, moving his phone from the middle of the bed over to the nightstand and plugging in the charger. He closed his eyes and exhaled a long breath, curling up and letting himself be tugged into darkness.

-

He woke up to loud noises, which made him groan loudly. As he woke up he deciphered what the noises were, he heard constant coughs, and gasps for air. It was coming from his left.

_That was your apartment._

He startled awake, his eyes snapping open as the hacking paused, and then continued even louder. Were you okay? Those noises sounded horrid, something that could only be produced out of someone that missed having sweet sweet oxygen in their lungs.

_What if you were being choked_

What if someone realized that he was Red Hood and went for whoever he had been hanging out with. That thought scared Jason awake enough that he decided to check on you.

He rolled out of bed, snagging a knife out of the ground and sprinting towards his door, almost ripping it off the hinges after he unlocked it. He sprinted towards your door and tried the handle. 

Which he realized it was locked, he sighed, praying that you wouldn't be mad in the future. He raised his foot and slammed it to the left of the door handle, the door flying and landing harshly onto the ground of your living room.

"HOLY!-" you screamed in shock, scrambling around and falling off your couch, watching as your door flew over your head nearly slamming into you, which most likely if it hit would have rendered you unconscious.

Jason stood in the doorway, holding his knife behind him which he had just flicked up, aqua eyes flickering around your apartment looking for any threat. His eyes finally landed upon your frightening form.

"...Jason?" you asked bewildered, seeing the white hair that you had grown to adore.

"Are you alright?" Jason said, pocketing his knife when he realized that there was no one else in the apartment. He briskly walked over to you, making sure you weren't harmed.

"What? Am I alright? uh, yeah, I-I'm sick though. You didn't get my text?"

Realization dawned on Jason and red flushed his form. He didn't check his phone when he got back from the bar, you probably had texted him after that. He turned to look at the door, then you, repeating this back and forth a few times

"Why'd you kick my door down?" you asked, staring at your broken door and then back at Jason. 

"I, uh, thought you were choking, and I panicked, so I came to save you...?"

"Wow, I'm pretty sure I've never had a neighbor that was willing to kick my door down to save me.....very courageous." You laughed lightly, teasing Jason as you watched him turn red. You crawled off the floor, grabbing your blanket and wrapping it tightly around your shoulders. "I mean, at least you saved me from boredom, does that count?"

"I-I can pay for the door," Jason mumbled.

"That would be appreciated, also, can I sleep on your couch? Sleeping in an apartment in Gotham without a lockable door is a very risky game." You watched as he nodded and you smiled before walking out of your apartment and into his.

He sighed, grabbing one of your heavy dressers and dragging it in front of your door, making sure nobody could get in without difficulty.

He then walked away from the doorway, walking into his apartment and shutting the door behind him, locking it. He saw that you had curled up onto the couch, your blanket almost covering your eyes, as you had the television remote in your hand. 

He heard your sniffles and finally got over his embarrassment, feeling bad that you just had the rudest awakening of your life. "Do you want some soup as consolation?" he asked you, and he watched your head nod as you scrolled through movies.

He walked over to your pantry and looked through it, finding a can of soup sitting on one of the lower shelves, he snatched the can and brought it back to the kitchen to cook. While the soup was cooking he rested his hands on the counter and watched as you finally stopped scrolling through movies, landing on WALL-E.

Jason smiled, as that was one of his favorites when he was a kid. He watched the movie from the kitchen, after around ten minutes pass he poured the soup into a bowl with and grabbed a spoon. He walked back to the couch and placed the bowl on the coffee table. 

You peaked out of the blanket mound, looking at the soup and reaching for it. "Thanks." you grabbed the spoon that was resting a bowl and started to eat. 

Jason nodded, looking a little lost since he didn't want to leave you by yourself. You looked at him and slapped the cushion to the right of you. Jason shimmied around the table before plopping down on the couch next to you. You shuffled up and laid back on his thigh, occasionally tilting your head back upright when you took another spoonful of soup. 

Jason got incredibly involved in the movie, only realizing that you hadn't spoken since halfway through, he looked down and only then did he notice that you were softly snoring. 

Jason watched you pull the blanket up right below your eyes, mumbling something incoherent under your breath before going back to snoring. 

Well.

He wasn't going anywhere.

He found a blanket to the left of him that he vaguely remembers placing on his couch, he grabbed it and threw it over his body, throwing his head back against the couch. A smile reaching his face as he felt your curl further into him. 

As he was about to succumb to the grasps of sleep, you mumbled something again, a little more distinguishable. 

"Lov' y'u Jay."

_Huh._


	3. Chapter 3

A MONTH LATER.

It was a gala.

Of course, it was a gala.

Jason's face was turned into a frown as he scrolled through the text that the replacement-- Tim had sent him. He was sitting on the couch with the television turned on for some minor background noise. 

He sighed, and threw his head back, throwing an arm over his eyes to block the sun that was glaring at him through the slits in the curtain. 

He was supposed to hang out with you tomorrow night at the bar that you worked at, one of the only things that he looks forward to, besides patrol. 

But now, that would be ruined, by an inconvenient birthday gala for his adoptive father. 

Tim had said that Dick had corralled Damian and Tim himself together to ask for their help to prepare for the birthday gala, Damian's job had been to accompany Dick with grabbing stuff that Alfred said that they needed. 

Tim's was to retrieve Jason.

A task big enough to rival the preparation of the party. 

"Come on, Jason. Alfred agrees that the gala would b more enjoyable if all of Bruce's sons were 2 make an appearance."

"No."

"Pls? :)"

"No."

"Pretty pls???? :D"

"No."

"Even 4 Alfie?"

"........No." 

"Stop being stubborn. :(" 

"No."

"....Does it help if u can bring a +1?"

"..."

Jason thought for a little, spacing out as he stared at the text, not truly focusing on it.

Until his brain came to a harsh stop and he almost flew himself off of his couch in the revelation that had struck him like a bullet.

And he knew what that felt like.

He could bring you, on a formal date, and he doesn't have to reschedule his hangout time with you.

"Fine."

"Yo, that wrked?"

"..."

"Who r u bringing?"

"..."

"Jason????"

"..."

"How rude. :("

-

It was the next evening, and Jason was nervous. 

Jason stood in front of your newly replaced door that had been put in a couple of weeks ago, he knocked the back of his hand on it. He shifted his weight between his heels, reshifting positions every time he heard a noise from inside the apartment. 

You opened the door, rubbing your eyes to try to make out the shape of a person from your bleary vision. You squinted as the familiar red hoodie that you had stolen countless times in the past came into focus.

"Mmm, dude, it's like, early," you said leaning against the door frame. Your eyelids flickering close for a couple of seconds before you startled yourself awake.

Adoration.

That's all that consumed Jason's soul at that moment.

"Sorry, were you sleeping?" he asked, lowering his voice, the tiniest pinch of something soft hanging on the edges of his voice.

"No duh, as I said a few seconds ago, It's early." you stretched out, yawning loudly.

"[Y/N] it's four o'clock..." he trailed off, faux exasperation on his tongue.

"Yeah, early. You don't get to wake up at the crack of dawn because you don't work in a bar," you explained, your tongue sticking out at him as you opened the door further. "Why don't you come in?"

"I - uh, sure, I guess," he said, fumbling with the words in his head.

He walked into your house, taking note of the slightly messy appearance. The blankets were strewn over the couch, there was a few popcorn pieces on the ground near the television - the remnants of a movie night between you two.

Your kitchen had grocery bags placed on the counter, he could see through the thin plastic that it was cookie ingredients. A soft smirk tugged at his lips as he remembered the baked good that you had given him before.

You walked over to the kitchen counter before starting to brew some coffee, yawning deeply as you stretched.

Jason followed you into the kitchen plopping himself into the stool, not really at the moment. 

You leaned against the counter and rested your hand on your head, relaxing while the sound of coffee resonated around the room, the alluring smell wafting with it. 

Jason fiddled with his hands in his lap, staring at you with soft eyes while you almost fell asleep standing up. He slightly smiled, chuckling under his breath when he watched you stumble around the kitchen, a cup of coffee sloshing around in your hand.

You rounded the counter and threw yourself onto the stool next to him, half leaning against him with your shoulder while you lazily sipped at your scalding coffee. 

You crossed your arms and laid your head on them as Jason turned his spinny stool to face you. 

"So, (Y/N)." 

"Hmm?" 

"Have I ever told you about my family?"

"Mm, don' 'tink so," you mumbled quietly.

"Well, there's this event tonight."

"Uh-huh." 

"A gala, per se." 

"Mm-hmm." 

"And they said I could bring a plus one." 

"'k." 

"Would you come with me?"

Jason tightened up and nervously waited for a response from you.

It was like time stopped before you just mumbled a small response.

"Sur'." 

"Really?"

"'s thi' a date?" 

"Uh, if you want." 

"Cool." 

"Yeah."

There was a beat of silence before you turned and whipped your head towards him with your eyes blown wide open.

"Did you say a date?" 

"Yeah," Jason said, bouncing his leg as you scanned him. 

"Did you say tonight?"

"Yes?"

"What time?"

"An hour?"

"Dude."

And just like that you were gone, coffee was forgotten as you bolted into your bedroom and shut the door with mild ferocity. Jason blinked in surprise, staring at the now vacant chair, the tightness in chest unbundled and suddenly joy replaced the space full force. 

He celebrated with a fist pump.

-

Jason squinted as soon as he walked through the door of the event building. His eyes squinted slightly as bright and flashy lights bombarded his vision. He noticed the pile of presents in the corner of the room and deposited his colorful box into the pile before walking into the crowd of people, swiftly skirting around the wealthy people who were oblivious to his path. 

He eventually got to the bar and ordered just water, even though the idea of liquid courage seemed so nice, he wanted to enjoy tonight. He slid into his seat and brought the glass to his lips staring at the men and women who were minding their own business. 

A person appeared to the right of him and relaxed in the seat next to him, he turned his head and was brought to the sight of Tim. 

Tim was staring at him in what looked like mild shock in his features. "You know, I didn't expect you to come." 

Jason hummed and kept his sight on the crowd ignoring the fear that was slowly growing in his chest at the fact that he was going on a date.

"Did you bring a plus one?" Tim asked, swirling his non-alcoholic drink in his hand and staring at the ice that spun around the sides.

"She... wanted to meet me here." Jason shrugged flitting his eyes over to Tim.

"She?" Tim exclaimed, expecting that Jason was going to bring a friend.

Jason's eyes narrowed before Tim had a smug smile appear.

"Who is she?" Tim asked nudging his shoulder with his drink hand and Jason ignored the urge to knock it out of his hand.

"You've never met her," Jason mumbled. 

The look on Tim's face and the jokes on his lips made Jason feel like the suit that encased him was slowly getting tighter and tighter. The deep red bowtie that was around his neck felt suffocating, he slipped his hand up and loosened it a little before sipping his water. 

When he glanced up he almost spat all of the water that was in his mouth straight onto the ground. 

Tim looked where Jason was looking and his eyes widened.

In your deep red dress, you gracefully made your way across the tiled floor. The bottom of the dress swayed back in forth in time with your steps. The click of your heeled boots was mesmerizing to Jason, he felt his throat tighten in the embarrassment of staring and hastily moved turned his face away.

You stood in front of him with a smile, "Hey, Jay." 

"Hey, doll." he shakily said and allowed a mask of confidence to wash over his face and smiled at you.

"Whoa..." Tim breathed before blinking as you held a hand out.

"Who's this?" you asked Jason curiously.

"This is my brother, repla-- Tim." 

Tim shot a look at Jason as he shook your hand.

"Nice to meet you, Tim." 

"You too." he choked before standing up and muttering a stuttery excuse before practically running away. He sent Jason a wide-eyed look right before he disappeared. 

You sat down next to him in the recently vacated seat and spun around towards the bar. 

"How many brothers do you have?" you asked, getting the attention of the bartender and asking for a margarita.

"Um, three." he twiddled his fingers a little and your eyebrows raised.

"Really?" you hummed.

"Yeah, the one with the blue bowtie over there is Dick, he's the outgoing one." Jason pointed over to a man with black slick hair like Jason with an outgoing smirk on his face and a woman tucked under his arm. 

"I recognize him." you squinted your eyes at him before redirecting your attention back to Jason.

"You just met Tim, he's the nerdy one." 

"Hmm." 

"And the small one across the room is demon-spawn, AKA, Damian" he pointed to a small teenager with a deep green bowtie. A scowl resting upon his face as he stood next to a taller man, who had a hand on Damian's shoulder as he conversed.

You looked at the tall man and then Damian, noticing how they looked alike. You then realized something and your mouth went agape. 

The man was Bruce Wayne.

You let out a wheeze and stared at Jason who had cocked his head at you.

"You're not sick again, are you?" he asked, his hand twitching as if he wanted to bring it up to your forehead.

"Your dad's Bruce Wayne, isn't he." you looked at him and he just shrugged with a smile. "These are the things you tell me." you deadpanned at him. 

"Didn't think it was important." you noticed how his body was slightly tense, his twiddling became more intense and he was avoiding your eyes. 

You dropped the subject and the two of you fell into an easy conversation, you rested your right side against him and chatted. He was anxious for a little before wrapping his left arm around you. You two had rested like this on movie night so you didn't think much of it. 

After a while of talking and laughing, you stood up and grabbed Jason's hand and pulled him out of his chair onto his feet, he steadied himself as you pulled him a little closer to you. 

"Wanna dance?" you asked and Jason nodded, stumbling while you dragged him across the room.

Eventually, you both got to the center of the room, you gripped his shoulder and he put his hand around the small of your waist. 

The music that floated throughout the room made it easy to relax and not worry about the prospect of stepping on your partner's toes. It was easy to think about the man in front of you and not worry about the nervousness that was close to seeping through the wall of confidence that you had built. 

You peered over Jason's shoulder only to notice that his father and youngest brother were staring at the two of you, surprise painted in their features, you guessed that Jason wasn't around for these kinds of events much...

Or they were surprised to see him and a plus one. 

Before you could stare for too long Jason twirled you around the other way, the ends of your dress kicking up with the slight draft. You gripped onto him a little tighter as he moved you swiftly, ignoring how the background colors mushed together until you were stuck with Jason's face as the only thing that you could see in clarity. 

Not like that was a bad thing. 

Eventually, the event died down, and people started to migrate out of the doors. Your eyes darted to the clock before sighing, realizing that you had to take an earlier shift than usual the next day. Jason noticed your face and you both outside and to the parking lot. The cold breeze wafted through the air, moving your hair and caressing your cheeks. 

Jason shrugged off his suit jacket before handing it to you, you blinked at him before whispering thanks and quickly put it on, it was a few minutes of comfortable silence before you got back to your parking spot. 

The two of you stood in front of your car, a light shining over both of you, a golden glow shining on the tops of your faces. 

You pulled open your door and turned around to thank Jason for inviting you out only for your halt at the proximity of him. 

You stood in front of him, your head kind of tilted up to stare him in the eyes because of his height. There was nothing said between both of you and before you could try to form words you got swept into the moment of him right in front of you and in return, magnetized you into leaning forward. 

You both were only inches apart before you realized what was happening, realized that you didn't want to screw this up and that this was bad timing. You quickly averted and placed your painted lips on his cheek, you could feel him freeze under your touch and quickly curse lightly. 

Maybe he didn't want this. 

You got into your car and started it, the engine rumbling as it kicked to life. 

"See you for movie night next week?" 

"...Yeah." he sounded dejected. 

You closed the door and were quick to pull out of the parking lot, lightly speeding as you rushed to get back to your apartment complex faster than him so you could hide in your bed without having to face him.

You hoped you didn't just screw this all up.


	4. Chapter 4

You hadn't talked to Jason since the night in the parking lot. 

You hadn't even had the movie night that you had planned on having, every time either one of you laid eyes on the other it was almost like you had a heart attack. You both diverted immediately, maybe pretending to be caught up with the other neighbors. If there wasn't anyone who was conveniently there to save you from the tidal wave of embarrassment you usually bit the bullet and walked by him. 

You didn't sleep very well after that, a sense of uneasiness settling in the pit of your stomach. You were always half asleep while you were at work, almost clocking out across the bar while trying to wipe it down after another long and treacherous day. 

Eventually, your boss took one look at you, ripped the cloth from your hand, and attempted to push you out of the building. You weren't exactly pleased about this, but you rolled with it anyway, the weight of being conscious beginning to settle onto your shoulders. 

Sometimes while fumbling with your keys, your eyes would dart over to his door and your brain would just halt. All comprehensible thoughts becoming mush as Jason flooded your head, you couldn't even count how many times you shook your head as if you were throwing away the daydreams. 

Jason didn't put his all into anything he did either, half-doing it as much as possible. He even lost the enjoyment of busting criminals and the sheer satisfaction of watching them go get locked up for years and years. Every time he encountered one of his siblings or even Bruce, they seemed to all have the same look of concern/pity. 

Maybe it's because while they were talking with civilians and witnesses and doing their job, he was standing a couple of rooftops away with his arms crossed. Occasionally flipping his guns around his fingers in boredom, completely unfocused as he stared at a brick in the wall absentmindedly. 

Dick, the golden-child, tried to put his hand on Jason's shoulder and attempt to wiggle the truth out of him. Jason shoved his hand up and threatened to remove it if he tries to put his grimy fingers within five feet of Jason again. Dick just backed away with his hands up, looking at him with his eyebrows furrowed until he grappled away with a little urgency. 

Jason sighed, not bothering with watching Dick's retreating form. Instead, he tore off his helmet and sat on the edge of the building that he was on top of, letting the winding flood through his hair, and letting his eyes close.

Every time his thoughts drifted back to you, his fist clenched slightly before he untightened them, forcing himself to inhale and exhale deeply. He didn't mean to accidentally scare you off, it was just like he shut down, not believing that what was happening was happening. 

He eventually shivered, looking up and seeing dark clouds roll in. It was the middle of winter, and patrolling around with snow and ice covering the ground, almost like it was there for the sole purpose of making him accidentally faceplant or comically fall, did _not_ sound fun. He slapped back on his helmet, activating the tracker on his bike and making his way towards it. 

For some reason, your house hated you. Maybe it was because it was tired of all of the tension between you and Jay. Maybe it was angry because you hadn't bothered to clean as you planned on doing. Really, who knows? 

You were lazily lying around, hiding inside of the heated building to avoid the 23°F weather. You had popped outside to grab a drink that you had forgotten to grab from your car from earlier that day, as soon as you stepped around a cold burst had blown straight into your face. You had almost ditched the drink and disappeared back into your apartment. 

You had only walked across the street but the frost was already biting at your eyelashes and your nose, your teeth starting to chatter slightly. You picked up the drink and blinked a few times at the weight, you realized that it had frozen and you silently wondered exactly how cold it was. 

Then, as soon as you stepped back into the nice warmth of your house, _the heating gave out._

You could not believe your luck, you could feel it, the cold that was going through the vents. You were bewildered at the idea that your apartment decided that blowing A/C through your vents, in the middle of winter, in 23°F weather. You walked to your control panel and you blanched at the A/C button being stuck in the ON position. 

Nononono. 

You swore that your house had a mind of its own, maybe it was because it was angry at you and Jason fighting and wanted to reap revenge.

You pressed the heat button once, but it flashed heat for two seconds before switching back to A/C. 

You knew that the logical option was to knock on Jason's door, a look of guilt on your face as you even tried to explain what happened. You knew that the look on his face would be akin to bewilderment and you sighed and shook your head. 

You swung open your closet, tugging on a hoodie, (in fact a Red Hoodie, hah). You found sweats and wool socks you shrunk into your bed with the thickest blanket in your house. You looked at the clock and you groaned at the fact that it was only 10 P.M. 

It was going to be a long night. 

-

You truly thought that you would be able to survive the cold. The thick blankets that were wrapping you up and the extra layers made you almost think that you were going to get through the night with relative ease. You kind of wished that you could take that back, and ask your previous self _why did you jinx me?_

It was colder in your house than itwas outside. 

You knew that staying in here all night was going to be detrimental to your health, it was only 2 A.M. and you were already experiencing symptoms of hypothermia and you rather not continue and watch it get worse. You stood up, ignoring the way that your shaking joints almost gave out under the weight of your body, and instead focusing on finding your keys without falling. 

You could faintly hear your teeth chattering while you stumbled around, finding your keys on the counter. You picked them up and hissed at the cold metal biting into your skin, your vision was slightly blurring and your breaths were getting more shallow but you ignored that in favor of pushing yourself to open the door. Your motor skills and coordination weren't doing too well, but you at least needed to get into the hall.

You unlocked the door and shoved yourself out of your apartment room, expecting to feel slightly better in the hallway; however, you were disappointed by the cold. You guessed that heating the hallways was useless when people stayed in their rooms. 

You sighed, approaching Jason's door. You much rather stay here than any of your other creep neighbors, anyway. 

Jason was on his couch, a book was in his lap and a cup of hot cocoa that Alfred had given him the recipe for. He was curled under a blanket and the TV had some sort of movie in the background, he just scrolled through the descriptions until he found something that mildly caught his eye and pressed play. He diverted his attention to the words painted across the paper as the soft sound and dialogue played through his apartment. 

When he heard a quiet knock on a door, his eyes flickered up to look at the movie. Confusion splayed across his face as he watched one of the main characters stare at a picture frame in their hands, no knocking insight. 

He heard the soft knocking again and he this time was convinced that it was coming from his door, he looked at the time and doubted that anyone sane would be knocking at this time. He sighed, grabbing a pistol from where he kept them tucked away in a locked drawer. He approached the door, shifting the gun to his left hand as he opened his door the slightest, peering outside. 

The sight that was in front of him made him do a double-take. You were sitting against the door frame, eyes slightly closed. Your face was flushed and your eyelashes and hair had frost on the tips. He could hear the chattering from your teeth and had the urge to steady you as you swayed.

"H-Hey, Jay." was the weak hello that you gave.

"(Y/N)?" was the baffled response. 

"My h-heating broke, app-apparently taking the A/C with it." you shrugged and his turquoise eyes held a look of concern that almost shattered your already taped-together heart. "Mind if I stay the n-night?"

"Holy- (Y/N) how long has it been broken?" he asked, shooting a slightly panicked look at his gun, tucking it behind a grocery bag on the table next to the door. He opened the door for you and observed while you shuffled by, he knew borderline hypothermia when he saw it, and this fits all of the mental boxes he was checking. 

"Since 10," you mumbled, eyeing the blanket on the couch and worming your way under it, ignoring the inevitable tension that was soon going to be brought upon the two of you. 

"Why didn't you come over sooner?" he asked, shutting the door and locking it on both locks, pouring an extra cup of hot cocoa for you in the kitchen and then proceeding to the couch. 

"Didn't know if I could." you curled yourself further into the couch, eyes flitting from the television to the red mug that was being handed to you. "Thanks."

Jason sharply inhaled before sliding on to the couch next to you, grabbing another blanket that was folded on the back of the couch and laying it over you. He had the urge to just hold you next to him and try to give you his body heat. 

"I'm sorry I made it awkward," you said, a nervous tinge in your voice. Your head was against the cushion, sliding dangerously close to Jason's shoulder now and then. 

"You-- you didn't anything, I didn't mean... I didn't mean to, uh, how do I phrase this?" he said, you raised an eyebrow at him, waiting kind of patiently. "I wanted whatever was going to happen under that light to happen, doll. I was startled by the suddenness of it, that's all." he was surprised that his voice was clear when he talked the second time.

"Oh," there was a beat of silence, your focus shifting to look at him dead in the eye, "promise?"

"Of course, doll," he said, and something in your chest untightened, and the resentment that he felt at himself for screwing it all up, left. Your head finally dropped onto his shoulder, finding that it was most comfortable in the crook between his neck and his shoulder. His arm wrapped around your waist and pulled you closer by a fraction. 

"Good, didn't like fighting with you." you slurred, he felt the vibrations of your voice through his chest where you were pressed up against and he tried not to flinch at the coldness of your nose in his warm skin. 

"Me neither," he admitted, his right hand sneaking under your covers to grasp your hand and squeeze it, hissing at the temperature of it. "Your hands are freezing still, here." he untangled you from your cocoon and you didn't have the happiest look on your face as you were uncovered, he threw it around the two of you, this time you were pressed against him without a barrier. 

"Oooh, this is nice." was the only thing that left your lips and he chuckled lightly, "reminds me of when I got sick." your face tightened as you remembered your poor door. 

"How about we hope that you _don't_ get sick after this." he looked down at you and the disgruntled look on your face. 

"Meh." 

"You falling asleep on me?" he asked, noticing the way that your eyelids were dropping and your blinks were slower. He made sure to feel your hand to make sure that you were at least heating up.

"Maybe. You're warm." you tried to nuzzle your way further into him, and he had to admit, this was better than not talking and trying to skirt around each other instead. 

"Ah, so you're using me for your warmth," he said, and you hummed in thought, the blanket slightly slipping down. He used the arm that wasn't holding you to fix the blanket, a look of pure delight on his face. 

"The only reason why I'm cuddling with you, Todd," there was a little moment of silence and contemplation before you continued, "is this even cuddling?" 

"I would consider it cuddling." 

"Alright, cool. Not going to lie, you're pretty good at this." you looked up briefly and shot him a little grin, before going back to making sure your nose was warm. 

"You're not terrible yourself." he closed his eyes to commit the feeling of his arm wrapped around you, and having the feeling of somebody next to him. 

There was a beat of nothing and Jay raised an eyebrow and lightly shook his shoulder. 

"(Y/N)?" he inquired, watching the way that your face relaxed when his left hand threaded through your hair and removed the few loose strands that were flopping over your face and tickling you. He felt the words behind his tongue, the three dreaded words. He almost spat them out, but he realized that they were useless when you were half asleep. 

"Mm?" 

"Nevermind, sleep well, doll." his smile was small, but it was full of love. 

"As long as you don't kick me out in the morning." was the last coherent thing that you said. 

"Never." 


	5. Chapter 5

You stared at the damp leather jacket in your hands before sighing and tossing it into your dryer, silently wondering where on earth does Jason keep his unlimited supply of jackets. You didn't know, and honestly, you weren't sure if you ever wanted to know. 

Jason, being the incredibly lazy adult that he is, shoved a basket of clothes into your arms after knocking on your door. He spat some bull excuse of work or something before running off, jogging down the hall. You had just stared at his retreating form incredulously, wondering why in God's name was it _your_ job. 

You were only doing this because you were neighbors and almost lovers with the absolute mess that is Jason.

He texted you later in the afternoon that he promised he would make it up to you, promising dinner or cookies or something. You rolled your eyes at the text, shutting off your phone and continuing sorting through the pile of clothes which was at least was two feet deep.

You pulled out another dark and weathered leather jacket from the bottom of the pile and threw it in, barely holding the eye rollback. God, did he have a job or something that warranted him owning _this_ many?

_What did he work as anyway?_

You stopped mid-way of throwing one of his t-shirts into the machine. You blinked and tried to recall all of the conversations that had been between the two of you, finding absolutely nothing that ever related to his work. You knew that he had a good amount of money, and you also guessed that it was probably because his dad is loaded - even then, he had mentioned going to work around when you were getting ready to clock out in bed he was working a night-shift.

You sighed, reeling back and pushing the door closed. You powered it on and twisted the settings to fit all of the clothes that you had tossed in, pressing "Start".

You walked away from the machine, ignoring the pain that was radiating from your back since you were crouched over for a good thirty minutes, a very good portion of that time marveling at his jackets. 

No matter how good of friends you two were, and how much you knew him, you wouldn't mention your fascination with his jackets. You snorted, the idea of getting him a hot pink leather jacket coming into your mind, Christmas was just around the corner anyway and it was a really good idea to get back at him for dumping his clothes into your arms.

Where were you going to find a large pink leather jacket, though? You guessed that you would have to figure that out later. 

You just wrote "LEATHER JACKET!!!!" on a pink sticky note and stuck it on the Christmas square on your calendar, and if Jason asked, you didn't plan on explaining it to him. Now you were stuck and thinking about the reactions of his family if they caught him in it, a brief snort left your lips and you shook your head, dismissing the thoughts. 

You pondered if he would wear it for you, just because you two were close. 

You hoped he would. 

You often questioned your relationship with Jason, I mean, a quick recount of all of the encounters that you've had with him in the past year would be a little puzzling. The first time you met him, you had asked to use his shower and he surprisingly said yes, the two of you flirted with each other at a bar, planned an almost-date? (you still have no idea), then you failed to appear for said almost-date. After all of that your door being kicked down by him, thinking you were in danger when you were sick, you then fell asleep on him, which you still cringed at when you thought of it. 

He invited you to a gala, (which was a date), and you almost had a kiss straight out of a Disney movie, only to abort the mission and kiss him on the cheek, fleeing immediately. Then your heating broke a week back and then you had to ask to stay at his apartment for the night to avoid getting severe Hypothermia. 

And now you were doing his laundry, which strangely reminded you of domestic life with Jason, and for some reason, you didn't reject the idea. 

You thought about getting together with him, you both doing dishes and laughing at jokes that you traded, shoulders and hands brushing while you two were forearm deep in soapy water. You could imagine him getting that stupid grin on his face while he cupped the water in his hand and splashed it directly onto your face. 

You can imagine yourself splashing him back and the dishes were forgotten while you had a soap and water war, both of you slipping with a surprising noise and falling on the tile, slightly skidding across it. A moment of silence before you both burst out laughing. 

You can't help yourself but grin at the thoughts, slightly chuckling. 

You hear the dryer beep and you walk over with your basket, scooping the warm and a little wet clothing into it. You leaned down and made sure to grab the astray socks that attempted to escape your wrath, you then walked over to your couch and set down the clothing, pulling them up out of the basket and folding them into a tower next to you. 

By the time you were done with folding his clothes, it was around 1 A.M. You didn't know if Jason was home but you decided to take the clothes over in case he needed them tomorrow. You stood up and tucked the basket under your arm, snatching the key with a red keychain connected to it. Something Jason had recently closed in your palm with a smile so big you were sure that he was reflecting sunlight.

You unlocked your door and went out into the hallway, checking for your neighbors out of pure preservation for your sanity. You didn't want rumors to spread around the floor if one of the gossiping old ladies saw you entering your male best friend's (maybe more?) room.

You sighed, standing in front of the door, inserting the key and twisting. Eventually, you unlocked the door and got inside, basket still tucked under your arm. 

As soon as you stepped into his apartment you wished you didn't. 

Your mouth gaped and the basket dropped out of your arms along with the key and onto the floor, the stacks of clothing mish-mashing with each other, which ruined all of the hard work you just did to keep the clothes folded and correctly towered. 

Your eyebrows shot up almost to your hairline and you felt like your breath had been forcefully removed from your lungs.

In front of you, there were four superheroes; Nightwing, Red Robin, and Robin carrying an unmasked Red Hood, _through a window_. The three of them, (you were excluding Red Hood because he was limp and subsequently crushing every single one of them.) stared at you in shock. 

Your eyes darted from one to another, taking in the differing amounts of shock in their features. Your observing stopped upon reaching Red Hood, even though a domino mask covered his eyes, you would recognize the white shocks of hair that split out from above the center of his forehead from anywhere.

Jason was Red Hood.

Jason was _Red Hood_. 

You blinked a few times trying to take in the new information that was spreading to every corner of your mind. You removed your eyes from your neighbor and looked at the three suit-clad men. 

Jason had three brothers. Red Hood was often seen around these three superheroes. Nightwing and Red Robin were staring at you with fear and a very small amount of something you couldn't identify as they recognized you.

"Please don't tell me that the three of you are his brothers," you asked, your eyes closed as you breathed deeply, trying to calm your racing heart. 

"Uhh..." 

"Oh, no."

"Tch." 

You practically got the information that you needed to answer your question from that.

"Why exactly is he unconscious?" you asked, staring down the three of them with a level gaze.

Tim almost dropped him, his arms getting weak. He quickly shifted his hold, eventually all 225 pounds of Jason getting to him, and seemingly getting to his brothers too. 

"Before Tim accidentally drops him on his head, can you at least shuffle him to the couch?" you asked, exasperated. You were already pondering exactly how in the world did you get three superheroes to freeze like you were their mother and catching them in the act of something rebellious. 

They hobbled their way around Jason's apartment, you watch them carefully as they laid him down on the couch. 

As soon as he was set down on the couch you let a breath that you didn't even know you were holding. Robin, AKA Damian, crossed his arms at stared at you, eyebrows taut together in a way where he showed his displeasure at your interruption. Nightwing, AKA Dick, had his hand on the back of the neck, at least having the decency to look a little embarrassed at being caught. Red Robin, AKA Tim, which was the only one of the three that you had met in person and not stared at from afar, looked a little sheepish.

"Before you, all flee, can one of you at least tell me what happened to him?" you asked, slightly agitated. You brought your hand up to massage your temple, eyes darting to Jason's form to check if there were any visible wounds. 

"He, he, uh, got hit with a baseball bat, and stumbled, and then tripped and slammed his head on a wall," Tim explained, and you shook your head.

"You're kidding," you asked, mouth hanging open with surprise. "Y'know, that actually sounds like him, nevermind you're probably not kidding and honestly, I don't know which one I would be more surprised with." 

"Alright, you can leave him with me, I guess." you sighed, looking down at your messed up clothes with a flat look. Before Dick could open his mouth and plead with you not to tell anyone you started, "Relax, I won't tell anyone, I'm both his friend and neighbor, and I really don't want anyone breaking in here to kill him and making noise while I'm asleep." you joked and Dick and Tim visibly deflated with relief. Damian still looked like he wished to kill you in your sleep.

"Before Damian lunges for my neck, and Jason wakes up to this mess, I recommend you three scoot," you said motioning to the small angry spikeball and then to the window. 

"Alright, see you later, (Y/N)?" Tim asked, settling himself halfway out of the window frame.

"Hopefully not like this." 

He shot another sheepish grin at you and then jumped out the window frame, then the other two followed. You walked up to the window and closed the window flipping the latches on the top, testing the window to make sure that it wasn't going to be slid open.

You turned back around, exhaling breath out and shaking your head while chuckling. You could not believe that out all of the apartment complexes in Gotham, Red Hood moved into yours, then you became friends with him, and now you have a crush on him like a schoolgirl.

You stared at the basket with your eyes blown wide, the secret of his jackets now being revealed to you. 

Now you were _so_ getting him a pink one. 

You picked up the key of the ground and shoved it into your pocket, quickly exiting his and entering yours, grabbing a bunch of comfortable clothes and shoving them on. You then returned to his apartment after locking your door, already assuming that you wouldn't be leaving his tonight. 

You returned to the couch, picking up his shoulders and head up off of where they were sinking into the couch. You groaned at his dead weight and struggled to insert yourself under his head, after you managed to wiggle your way in there, you let his head drop slowly back onto your thighs. 

You knew that he would probably need ibuprofen, but right now, the first order of business was just making sure that he at least woke up. Your hand drifted down his shoulder to rest above the red bat on his chest, barely being covered up by one of those cursed jackets. 

There was a scratch or two on the bat, and the armor covering the rest of his torso looked a little damaged. The shock had subsided and now you were thinking about how many times had he been bandaging himself up in his apartment while you were sleeping next door, oblivious to his pain, you bit your lip hard and your fist tightened.

You closed your eyes, swallowing the bile that was in the back of your throat and leaning against your hand that was propped up against the arm of the couch. Your fingers threaded through the white hair gently, not wanting to cause him any pain if he woke up.

You weren't exactly sure how long you had been on the couch, but you assumed it was around 3 A.M. and you knew that you probably weren't going to be sleeping tonight. All you focused on was that there was a groan from your lap, you looked down at him, faint concern making your chest ache briefly.

He opened his eyes, squinting as everything spun around him violently, then immediately his eyes closed and he clenched his teeth at both the spinning and the feeling of his head pulsing. He opened his eyes when he finally felt like everything stopped spinning and unblurred. He looked up and saw your face in clarity, confusion filling him. 

He didn't exactly know why he was on his couch, with his head pressed against your stomach while he took a snooze on your lap, but he wasn't exactly complaining.

He brought his hand up to his face to rub his head and his eyes caught the leather gloves encasing his hands, he then lifted his head slightly off of you and the symbol on his chest glared up at him in all of its glory. He realized what was happening, and that you were with him while he was in all of his armor. 

And he knew that he couldn't deftly cover this up, because there was only one superhero that had a red bat emblazoned on their chest, and you were smart enough to know if he was lying right in front of you. His face twisted into a grimace, knowing that this wasn't the best of situations that he could have been in. 

"Hey, Red Hood," you spoke, your right hand doing a small salute by your forehead before dropping back to your side. 

"I can't convince you that this is a costume, can I." he sounded desperate and you shook your head at him. 

"Unless you were doing a group costume with your brothers, and it's Halloween? No." 

"They were here?"

"Found them carrying you through a window, Jason."

"Oh." 

"You were hit by a bat and then tripped and bashed your head against a wall, very nice, by the way." 

"Don't remind me." he sounded pained, he remembered the bat striking him in the ribs and the pain that came with it. And by the agony that flared up in his abdomen when he breathed, he would bet that at least two ribs were currently broken. 

You watched carefully as he pushed himself back up vertically, his left hand gripping the arm of the couch like a lifeline. 

"Are you alright?" you asked, saving the questions that were on your tongue for later as you stood up from the couch to stand in front of him.

"I think so, my head is pounding though." 

"Side effects of concussions, genius." you joked.

"Astute observation, doll." he joked back. 

"Hey, I'm trying to help," you explained and he slightly smiled. 

"Need ibuprofen?" you asked, not exactly like the way that he was obviously in pain and he was still struggling to sit upright. 

"Probably, there's some in the cabinet." he pointed towards a cabinet in the kitchen and you opened it and grabbed the bottle and dumped two into your hand. You then snatched a cold water bottle out of the fridge before walking back to him. 

You placed the bottle next to him and deposited the pills into his hand, he said a quick thanks before popping them in his mouth and throwing water in there as well. He slouched back against the couch, taking off his gloves and tossing them in the direction of his bedroom, his jacket going next. 

"Why didn't you tell me?" you asked, your voice in a slightly heartbroken tone. You were standing in front of him instead of returning to your spot on the couch, wanting to look him in the eyes instead of his profile.

"You know why I couldn't. You know I couldn't put you in danger, being Red Hood is already dangerous and scary enough, I don't know if I could live with myself if you somehow got dragged into this mess, and-"

"We've been friends for almost a year! Jason." your voice was rising and he flinched at the sound. 

"Come on, doll. You know I would have if I could-" Jason didn't want you to cry, he could hear the wobble in your voice and he didn't know exactly how much his heart could handle it if you started. He kept spitting out comforting words, constantly trying to steer you away from shedding tears. 

"You could have died, without me knowing! And I wouldn't have even gotten a chance to say I love you!" your voice rose and rose and then eventually died after you said it, silence filling the room, even you seemed surprised at your own words.

Jason's face slowly contorted from panic, to surprise, to absolute shock as he practically lost all reasonable thoughts. 

"What?"

"Nevermind Jason, forget it." you shed the tears from your eyes and started sobbing, the shock faded and panic was back and hitting Jason like a train, or like the brick wall that met his face. 

He didn't know exactly what in the world to do, and he didn't like seeing the tears on your cheeks, your face getting progressively more flushed as you cried silently. Eventually, he sprung up onto his feet, ignoring the violent spinning again that strongly advised him that he shouldn't be standing.

He pressed his lips to yours and he could taste the saltiness of your tears, but ignored it for the feeling of you against him. His hands settled on your hips, trying to hold you close and ground himself so he didn't topple over due to the erratic twirling of the world. He could feel your attempt to understand what was going on, not reciprocating his kiss. 

Hehoped that you didn't raise a hand and slap him across the face. 

But to his surprise, your arms raised and you placed your hands on his chest, over the symbol. Your fingers splayed out against him to try and find a sense of security while you felt like you were floating. The armor was cool against you and that was the only thing that kept you from getting lost in the feeling.

Eventually, your hands moved and crept around his shoulders, up the back of his neck. They eventually tangled themselves in his inky hair, very gently, trying to avoid jostling his head too hard. He ignored how his head pounded, and his bones ached, in favor of just enjoying what was happening at the moment. 

The two of you pulled back, looking at each other, Jason had a grin on his face, you with surprise on yours. His hand moved to your cheek from your hip and his thumb swiped under your eye, collecting the residue of tears. 

"Just because that was fantastic, you aren't getting off that easily," you said, however, Jason could hear the elation in your voice. 

He chuckled and moved his head forward to rest it on top of yours. 

"Didn't expect I would, doll," he said, now that everything was quiet and he was back, in reality, he was feeling the pain again full force. He groaned as quietly as he could, trying to not make you freak out since you were leaning against him and he wanted to enjoy this as long as possible. 

But, all good things had to come to an end because you heard slight whistling when he breathed and your eyes darted up to meet his, the look on your face tightening and your eyes narrowing. 

"Are your ribs broken?" you asked sharply. 

"Um.." 

"These are the things you tell me _before_ we kiss, Todd!" you stepped away from him and he missed the warmth immediately.

He just watched as you fumbled and hissed at him, ignoring the sharp tones and the way you would occasionally scold him, or his brothers for not telling you. Even though this wasn't the most pleasant of situations and his head and ribs hurt, he wouldn't change this for the world.

**Author's Note:**

> my poor docs is so full


End file.
